The Dark Knight Ascending
by joeyjoell
Summary: Possible TDKR SPOILERS! John Blake has returned from his training, new heroes show up in cities, The O.M.A.C. Project threatens to destroy the USA, A CIA agent is deserted on an island near Greece and Bruce learns that he could never be happy INCLUDES DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY TIMELINE
1. The Dark Knight Ascending: Legacy

This is my very first fan fiction guys!

Don't go too hard on me, although I want your criticism!

This is set after the events of The Dark Knight Rises.

Set mostly in 2026 and 2027

**The Dark Knight Timeline:**

-Mid 1979: Bruce Wayne is born,

-Late 1991: Thomas and Martha Wayne are murdered,

-Early 1997: Bruce Wayne leaves to train,

-Late 2002: Bruce Wayne declared dead,

-Late 2004: Bruce Wayne returns from training,

- Early 2005: Batman's first appearance,

- Mid 2005: Batman saves Gotham from Ra's Al Ghul and The League of Shadows,

- Late 2005: Harvey Dent first appears and promises to bring justice,

- Early 2006: Joker first appears,

-Mid 2006: Joker's reign of terror begins; Joker turns Harvey Dent like the Joker

- Mid 2006: Joker's reign of terror ends and Harvey Dent dies, Batman takes the blame for his murder,

- Late 2006: Bruce Wayne starts an 8 year hiatus,

- Late 2013: Bane first appears as a member of the League of Shadows,

- Early 2014: Bane crashes the stock exchange and frames Bruce Wayne, Batman appears,

- Mid 2014: Bane takes over Gotham, Batman disappears,

- Mid 2014: Bane reveals a bomb that can destroy Gotham if anyone goes in,

- Late 2014: Batman returns, defeats Bane and Miranda Tate, the mother of his unborn child, turns out to be Talia Al Ghul,

-Late 2014: Batman carries the bomb out of Gotham and it detonates

- Early 2015: Bruce Wayne and Batman are declared dead, however he is alive and well.

- Late 2026: Our story begins...

**I recommend watching the movies before reading this**

**The Dark Knight Legacy**

**_Prologue_**

A misty cloud comes over Gotham Central Hospital, carrying ash from the epic battle that had finished only hours ago. People were still finding bodies from the massacre that was the war for Gotham. One body was of Miranda Tate's or as you know now, Talia al Ghul. However, the rest of Gotham did not know that, they assumed that she was a hostage of Bane's men. One heartbeat had stopped, but one was still beating. One person was dead, one person was still alive. There was a child in the womb and it was "the late" Bruce Wayne's son.

_2 years later..._

In the hallways of The Thomas and Martha Wayne Orphanage, two men stood in the hallway, while the children slept in their comfy beds. "You shouldn't be here; they all think you are dead" Spoke the voice of none other than Alfred Pennyworth.

"You know why I'm here," said Bruce.

"Of course, I do, you're trying to tell me why he doesn't need you" Alfred softly spoke.

"He'll be better off without me, I'm nothing but trouble," Bruce replied.

"You think just because Selina ran off with Helena..."

"Don't you dare use my daughter against me, Selina couldn't be tamed" Exclaimed Bruce.

"Still, you have to at least bond with the boy, he's two years old!" Alfred spoke, raising his voice. They both hear footsteps coming down the hallway. It was Robin John Blake with his bags. He is now starting his training, travelling across the world. "What is he doing here? He's supposed to be in hiding." Asked Robin

"I'm leaving; I'm not going to waste any more of your time, Alfred." Said Bruce

"Fine then! Run away! He's your responsibility!" Alfred shouted

Bruce walked away from his son; he walked out of his family home, with a tear in his eye.

Alfred heard a faint cry in the other room, and then it was suddenly silenced. Thoughts rushed through the elderly man's head, none of the thoughts were good. Alfred and Robin ran into the bedroom, the two year old child was gone, the window was wide open. "Who was the baby, Al?" frantically asks Robin.

"Damian Wayne"

**_11 years later..._**

**Chapter One: Project Cadmus**

Project Cadmus labs, 3AM. October 1st 2026

CIA Agent Amanda Waller, an old flame of Bruce Wayne, walks through the labs of Project Cadmus, monitoring the work of her workers. She was a slim, African American woman, with a bad background, leader of the disbanded Suicide Squad. After one of their members, Floyd Lawton rebelled against the government and is now a mercenary. Waller picked up a glass container labelled, the Lazarus Syndrome. "How is the O.M.A.C Project going?" asked Waller

"It is almost fully operational" said one of the scientists. Waller looked relieved, as if she had a deadline. Waller constantly looked into the window, as if she knew disaster was waiting to happen. She looked scared, she looked tense. Waller put her finger onto her holster. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes.

The window smashed, the scientists panicked, Amanda Waller pointed her gun towards the window, tense, she didn't look fearful, and she looked as if she knew this was going to happen. Only a drop of sweat rolled from her face. A short hooded figure stared into the broken window, from the outside. He grinned. He was wearing a domino mask, a red tunic, padded tights and kneepads and arm pads. Waller pulled the trigger, a powerful flame came out of the barrel in the gun, and so did a shape made of lead, speeding at more than seven hundred miles per hour. The bullet didn't seem to hit the mysterious figure. The hooded figure pounced through the window, holding a katana blade in his right hand. He sprinted towards the security in the room and quickly slashed one of the guards before he could pull his pistol out of his holster. The blade pierced his chest; the blood stained his grey hood and cape. The hooded figure swung his katana blade which hit the guard's neck. The hooded figure shouted, "WHERE IS THE O.M.A.C. PROJECT!?"

Waller exclaimed "I'm not letting you and your crazy master, get to me again!" The katana blade lowered towards Waller's neck. Waller realised that the would take her life O.M.A.C Project or not. Waller tilted her head to a briefcase. "And the Lazarus Syndrome too, Waller" whispered the hooded figure.

"Over there," squeaked Waller "oh and, it's unstable, it's not going to be able to help Bane, he's been sick for too long". The hooded figure grabbed both items and grunted. He leaped out of the window. Waller gasped, sweat poured down her face.

"Do you know what you've done!?" shouted a scientist, "You've just given them access to every file in the world, internet, telephone poles, security cameras! Virtually every conversation that has ever happened in the united nations since 2005!"

**Chapter Two: Homecoming**

The Batcave 9PM January 16th 2027

Robin Blake, stood in the Batcave, dark murky, infested with bats, just how he left it. Robin had just come back from his training. It had been eleven hard years travelling, it is now his thirty-fifth birthday, he insisted on not celebrating it, but Alfred never listened to anybody. Alfred came down the stairs to the Batcave, with a thirteen year old child next to him. Robin asked, "Who is this?"

"Tim Drake, sir, he's been helping me with all the new... technology in here..." Alfred replied.

Tim gave out his hand to Robin "Hi... I'm Tim, sir," Tim whispered.

"...and you just let him in here, Al?" Robin asked.

"Of course not, sir, I needed to hack my way in." Tim laughed. Robin looked at him and smiled.

"He... could be useful," Robin spoke, surprised.

"Well, I needed some help from the commissioner's daughter, she's hot, but she's 30" Tim said, jokingly. Robin chuckled, he turned around to Alfred.

"I have some designs for the costume, Al, oh and does the commissioner's daughter know about, our thing?" Robin asked.

Alfred smiled, "well, she's a part of our 'research' department, so that means I get to put my feet up for five minutes!"

Robin sat on the computer chair, typing, he couldn't pass the firewall, he couldn't figure out the password, whoever the commissioner's daughter was, she was good with computers. However, there was a ramp near the computer, he didn't know why. "I see you've found my computer," said a voice. Robin turned around and saw a red haired woman in a wheelchair who wore glasses with red lipstick. "Looking glass," said the woman.

"Sorry, ma'am?" asked Robin.

"Looking glass... the password, sir" said the woman.

"Oh," Robin typed onto the computer.

"I guess you are Robin... if I'm correct?" asked the woman

"Yeah, I prefer John though; I'm named after Robin Hood, my Mom's favourite movie"

"Okay John, Alfred's told me a lot about you." Said the woman

"And you are? Ma'am?"

"Barbara, my name is Barbara, they call me Oracle."

"I thought... you were younger" spoke Robin, confused.

"No, I think you mean, my sister, Sarah."

Robin continued to type on the computer, amazed on all the Intel Oracle had."You have a lot of Intel on this... computer, how did you get all this Intel?"

"I only downloaded half of something called the O.M.A.C Project, it was left to the Gotham City Police Department who only got half of it, because apparently someone stole it, now they have access to pretty much everything that happened since 2005. Its 2027 now, that's 22 years of information, monitoring everything that has ever happened in the United Nations." Oracle explained.

**_Chapter Three: We are Cats_**

A messy apartment in the city of Bludhaven 9:30PM January 16th 2027

Selina Kyle sat in her apartment, looking at her watch "she's late" Selina whispered to herself. Selina was an ex-cat burglar and an old flame of Bruce Wayne, they had previously planned to live together, however Selina's love for danger got the better of her and she left him, taking their daughter, Helena with her. Selina taught her daughter how to steal, like herself. Selina heard a faint knock on the window. Her daughter, Helena was outside the window, with a hint of blood on her mouth. Selina opened the window to let Helena in; she looked like he had gone through a beating. Selina looked disappointed, very disappointed. Helena coughed and fell to the floor. "I've been shot!" Helena screamed "Mom, I've been shot!"

"I can see, Huntress, you're late" Selina sighed, angrily.

"Oh, I'm sorry that I've just been shot, Mom" Helena groaned

"If you were faster, you could've avoided that gunshot," Selina moaned.

"Heavily bleeding here, ma" shouted Helena.

"It only skimmed your thigh, Huntress"

"Don't call me, Huntress, ma," Helena sighed "My name is Helena,"

"You need to make a name for yourself, kid, I'm the Cat, and you're Huntress" Selina explained

"Have you ever considered using our skills for good, you know, like my dad?"

"Don't mention him, or his ideals, or his morals, we don't owe anyone anything, we're stray cats and the world is our oyster," Selina told her

Helena or Huntress obviously did not agree with her mother's view on life and society, or her essence of tough love. From what she heard about her father, she agreed with him, and she thought he was fantastic, and so did Gotham and the cities that surround it. She had heard about her "war hero" father, Batman, Bruce Wayne. She had heard about his constant war for Gotham's soul, and of course, well being. She loved the times where her mother told her stories about him, his enemies, Joker, Scarecrow, Bane, the Gotham city mob, and even the Gotham City Police Department at one point.

Selina sipped out of a wine class until it was empty. "Mom, the doctor told you to stop drinking." Helena spoke, worriedly.

"I'm a cat, I do as I please, Huntress" Said Selina, while pouring another glass

"If you say so Ma" said Helena

"Oh, and I got another job for us" Selina spoke, happily

"So soon after the last one?" groaned Helena.

"You'll wish you never said that after I tell you what it is... well, a couple of months ago, a secret government project went missing, and it's called the O.M.A.C Project."

Helena gasped, she had heard about it on TV, the programme which instantly recorded data from every electrical device from the year 2005, The Government had it installed to every CIA base, Police Department, Army camp in the United Nations to combat terrorism, but a group of terrorists had got their hands on it so it was decommissioned, but some say they are still working on a better version of the O.M.A.C Project, she knew that was what her mother was talking about.

"The government has a reward for anyone who finds it, are you in, Huntress?" Selina asked

"I'm in, Mom"

Selina smiled and sipped some wine.

**Chapter Four: The Lazarus Syndrome**

Some where in Eastern Europe 2AM October 3rd 2026

A short hooded figure walks through a misty, lonely desert holding a briefcase and a canister. He stops, he smiles. He looks like he has been waiting for this moment for years. He looked into the sand and said the words "A fire will rise". Then, he knocked onto the sand, which peculiarly made a clanging sound. A beaten slave opened a trapdoor under the sand, he pointed a 19th century pistol at the hooded figure, he says,"your name?"

"Ibn al Xu'ffasch" The Hooded Figure told him.

The man gestured him to come in. Ibn dropped through the trapdoor, landing on his feet, unlike the slave, who fell flat on his back. Ibn kicked the slave out of his way, seemingly irritated by the filthy slave. The slave struggled to his feet, he saw his own tooth next to him, but he didn't even try to care. He quickly grabbed a plate of food on the shelf. "Mis...Mister, Xu'ffasch, would you like some... food?" Ibn punched the slave in the nose, he bled and dropped the plate, the food spread all over the floor, and so did the pieces to the broken plate. The Slave coughed, he was in poor health. Ibn looked around. He walked into the infirmary. A Doctor looked at him, Ibn nodded, he handed him the canister labelled the Lazarus Syndrome. Ibn looked down at a patient wearing a metal mask with tubes leading to an oxygen canister; he was quite muscular, but not as muscular as before, in his prime. It was Bane, the man who had once taken over Gotham.

"How is master?" Ibn asked,

"He is not very well, his condition is much worse than before, he needs the Lazarus Syndrome," The Doctor replied,

"That CIA agent said that it was unstable, do you think she's right?"

"Urghh... we... have no time to... listen to... her..." Bane sighs,

"Relax, master, you're not well enough to speak" The doctor told him,

"I... I... do as I please, doctor..." Bane groaned,

"What will it do to help him?

"The Lazarus syndrome helps accelerate the healing process and reinforces the immune system, so in Master Bane's case, it'll help his immune system fight his lung and heart infection, it'll also help heal his wound on his chest." The doctor told him.

**Chapter Five: Bring Your Daughter to Work day**

The Batcave 10:30PM January 16th 2027

Robin sat on a desk chair, typing on Oracle's Computer. Barbara Gordon rolled into the Batcave on her wheelchair, curious about what Robin was doing on her computer, surprisingly to her he was finding more about the Batcave crew, she realised that he must have found out about what happened to her, how she got her wheelchair, Barbara saw the files on the screen, Robin was looking at hers, he knew, or he was about to know.

Gotham City Police Department, 4PM March 5th 2012

It was a day that Barbara Gordon was anticipating; she had started her degree in law and now her father was letting her out on the job. Little did Barbara know, was that it would be the worst day of her life, and it would land her in a wheelchair. Commissioner Gordon had volunteered for an investigation in the narrows, which contains Arkham Asylum, home for the Criminally Insane. Gordon tried to convince his daughter than it was too dangerous, that he didn't want to lose her, especially after her mother ran off with his other two children, James and Sarah.

It was an increasingly cold day. They mostly stayed quiet in the car ride to Arkham; Barbara was determined to prove to her dad that she would not get hurt, that she wouldn't get herself into trouble. "We're close now, Babs, you okay?" Gordon asked. Barbara stayed silent; they had recently got in a fight about her siblings. "Are you not going to talk to me?" Gordon asked. Barbara grunted and looked out of the window. "So this is Arkham?" Barbara sighed, trying not to look at her father, "I figured it would look... y'know, a bit creepier,"

"Oh it gets creepy after a while, Babs, with these... inmates running around," Gordon laughed,

"I doubt it, Dad"

Gordon pulled up at a bridge, he un-winded his window. A heavily armoured man waked to his car, with a shotgun in his left hand. "Afternoon, Gordon, is this your daughter?" The man asked Gordon. Gordon nodded his head. "Okay, Miss Gordon, I'm gonna give you some ground rules, once you cross this bridge do not interact with anyone without a nametag, or a badge, they are not citizens, they are inmates, do you get what I mean?" Barbara nodded, "lower the bridge, Geoff".

"Why are there so many rules?" Barbara asked,

"This... hospital contains the most dangerous criminals Gotham and Bludhaven have ever come face to face with, don't underestimate this island, or bad things will happen to you, Babs"

"I got it Dad; this is the most dangerous place in the state,"

"No, Babs, in the country," Gordon corrected her.

Gordon pulled up in a parking lot; electrified gates surrounded the parking lot. It looked like a sports-ground for the inmates, a run-down one at least; a few men weren't playing football in a conventional sense. One man with a very visible deformity, about 7 feet, very muscular and scaly skin, named Waylon Jones, had tackled and tried to eat very short man who had once worn a top hat, named Jervis Tech. The other man, very skinny, The Joker, waved at Barbara and slowly whispered, "Hi, Cupcake!"

"Not too creepy," Barbara squeaked,

"Admit it, Babs; you're at least a bit scared,"

"Nothing to admit, Jimmy" Barbara laughed.

Barbara and Gordon walked to an entrance, it was guarded by two men "Badge?" one asked, and Gordon showed them his badge. "Enter". Gordon and Barbara hesitated for a moment, and then Gordon turned the doorknob, opening the door. Inside was a man with sideburns, he was bald and wore circular glasses, he had yellowed teeth and wore a suit, he was Dr. Hugo Strange. "Greetings, James and... Barbara isn't it?" Strange had a Russian accent. Barbara anxiously nodded, she was trying to hid the fact that she was really, truly terrified. "Babs, this is Dr. Hugo Strange, head of the most dangerous criminals division, we went to college together" Gordon told her, "So, Hugo, what's the problem?"

Hugo put his head in his hands, "The Joker has been killing our doctors... he wants Batman... he won't stop until we get him here, worst of all, he knows who he is but he won't tell us, he now thinks that the murders were all a dream"

Barbara shuddered, "he knows who the Batman is!?"

"You mean... he doesn't want to tell you?" Gordon asked,

Hugo gestured them to follow him, they, and a guard walked into The Joker's cell, and there he saw a battered, bruised scarred man. "How did you get all these bruises, Joe?" Hugo asked,

"Joe? He's a killer that once held the whole city hostage! He doesn't deserve to be given a civilised name!" Gordon shouted,

"We gave him a name, its part of the therapy, his name is Joe Kerr, we had various other names for him, for example, Jack Napier," Hugo told him,

Barbara stood silent, still trying hard to hide her fear. "I'm sure, Mr. Kerr you've heard about the killings," Hugo anxiously said.

"Oh yes! I'm so scared... all I've been doing is playing football with my friends Waylon and Jervis... can't be too careful with all those weirdos running around!" Joker laughed, "Although, Waylon has gone a bit... well, mad,"

"Uh... Mr. Kerr, we think it was you that killed those doctors," Gordon told him,

"Uh...I don't like the way she looks at me... Gordon's little girl... Babs, I think that's what you call her..." Joker giggled,

"I think, we should leave, Mr. Kerr tends to have violent reactions to people he doesn't like, I advise you to stay near Owen," Hugo said,

They started to walk out of the padded cell, until Barbara noticed something; the guard's pistol was gone. "Hey, where's your gun?" Gordon, already out of the room heard two gunshots, he ran back into the padded cell and saw two people lying on the floor, one dead, one holding on to her wound for dear life. Owen, the guard had a bullet between his eyes. The other, Barbara, was shot in the back, her legs unmoving, heavily breathing, still conscious, holding onto her wound. "Dad, I can't feel my legs," Gordon almost forgot about The Joker, who still had the gun in his hand and was about to shoot at Gordon. The Police Commissioner ran into The Joker and punched him in the nose. James Gordon constantly punched The Joker in the face until he bled. The Joker let out a maniacal laugh.

The Batcave January 16th 10:31PM 2027

"So... you know how I ended up in this?" Barbara asked Robin

"Oh... didn't see you there, I'm sorry if I'm sticking my nose where it's unwanted," Robin stuttered

"No, it's alright, I guess... it's was a pretty bad day,"

"I can't imagine... Barbara, you must wish it never happened"

Barbara rolled her wheelchair towards Robin, putting her hand on his shoulder saying, "not exactly, it kinda made me stronger... as a person I mean "

"I see how it would... so you wouldn't just... undo that day?"

"Never"

**Chapter Six: The Visit**

Thomas and Martha Wayne Orphanage January 17th 2027 9AM

Tim Drake sat on his chair typing at his computer, he was the only child awake at this time, it was a Sunday, and no one was awake before ten o'clock on Sunday. He was researching the O.M.A.C. Project, his hair was messy, and his glasses were steamy, he was wearing tacky blue jeans and a red polo shirt with an R on it. He knew that whoever had the O.M.A.C. Project right now probably knew what he was doing, but for all they knew, he was just some random kid, or they knew his alliance with the bat, as they did use the internet a lot. It didn't matter anyway, what Tim was doing had no interest to the league of shadows. It was only until a faint knock on the door that Tim's heart jump. It was Amanda Waller, the CIA Agent that lost the O.M.A.C. Project, which was someone that the League of Shadows would be interested in. He heard Alfred answer the door, Tim quickly rushed downstairs. "Hello I'm..." said Amanda Waller

"Before you say anything could you turn off all devices you have on you and follow us out onto the field?" Tim interrupted,

"Tim, what are you doing?" Alfred asked,

"The kid is right, so, where is the field?" Amanda told Alfred, putting her hand on his shoulder.

Tim led Amanda and Alfred onto the field, as they all turned off their devices, Alfred was surprised at how smart Tim was, that he would have let whatever plans Amanda Waller had fall right into the hands of the terrorists. Right now, The League of Shadows would have got access to the government's knowledge. Tim was thinking about who stole the O.M.A.C. Project, and what would people want with it. Tim led them to a bench with no technology in sight, he wondered if it was safe for them to be here. The terrorists must have known that Amanda Waller was at the orphanage, since she hadn't turned her devices off on the way there. "Amanda, what's the problem?" Alfred asked her,

"As you know, the O.M.A.C. Project was stolen" Amanda Explained, sitting on the bench, putting her hands on her forehead, "Okay... The League of Shadows is back... and they have it, and something else, called the Lazarus Syndrome, it regenerates cells quicker and reinforces the immune system, they are going to use it on Bane"

Tim shuddered, his heart skipped a beat, Bane, Batman's greatest physical enemy, was still alive and for all he knew, he was well. "You mean... Bane is alive?" Tim asked,

Amanda was devastated, she felt her guilt creep up on her, "yes... he's alive"

"What does he want with the O.M.A.C. Project? Why does he need it?" asked Alfred,

"He needs the backup plan... he needs the detonator to the earthquake machine," Amanda Waller sighed,

"What's the earthquake machine? What do you mean the back-up plan?" Tim curiously asked,

"While the American government was looking for solutions to the Gotham hostage situation, Bane had a backup plan; it was a distraction for something else. The League of Shadows was setting up an Earthquake Machine under America. He was first trying to get rid of Gotham because they had the people who were ready to fight back, and then he was going to destroy the United States, as he and his master Ra's Al Ghul thought that these countries were corrupt and deserved to be destroyed. We found the detonator somewhere in eastern Asia, where the League of Shadows used to train their army." Amanda explained,

"So where is the detonator now?" Alfred asked her,

"The Government officially doesn't know, but I do, and so does another person,"

"Who knows?" Tim asked,

"Bruce Wayne, he's also the holder of the detonator," Amanda explained,

"Master Bruce is supposed to be dead... he should be keeping his head low," Alfred exclaimed,

"That's the point, why would someone think of a dead person to be the holder of a death machine?" Tim explained,

"Exactly,"

**Chapter Seven: Enter Nightwing**

Gotham City Police Department January 26th 2027 0:48AM

Commissioner Gordon's retirement was coming up, he didn't want to retire, the law was his obsession, and he had pushed everything away except from his daughter for it. The rest of the Police Force thought his presence was unnecessary, that he had spoiled his reputation as a war hero by keeping the secret that Harvey Dent had killed people from the whole city. He tried to tell them it was for the greater good, he tried, and he tried, they wouldn't listen to him. It was over two decades since Harvey Dent's fall from grace; however, what Gordon did wasn't the kind of thing you forget. Gordon often thought about where The Batman was, or if he had actually died in that nuclear blast. He knew The Batman identity better than anyone who was still alive, even Alfred was coming to the last of his days. Gordon often pushed back the memory of which The Batman's identity really was. He saw him only as a symbol of justice, as a friend, not a man behind a mask.

Gordon often liked to travel to the roof of the police department, to turn on the Bat-Signal, as if he was waiting for Batman to come, to help him. He liked to turn it on; although, it made the rest of the Police Department think he was insane. Gordon was depressed, he relished in the memories of the trio that put a stop to the mob, until a clown came and blew one of the trio half to hell. It was Harvey Dent's push into insanity. As Gordon walked up the stairs, he saw a dark silhouette. It had a small mask in its hand, similar to Batman's, but it had a whole in the top so it would reveal whoever wore its hair. It had a red stripe across its chest going down to its arm. It had shoulder length hair, it smiled, and it was Robin-John Blake.

"Blake? Gordon asked. I haven't seen you in years!" Gordon shouted, "It is you, isn't it?"

"Yes, I am Nightwing," Nightwing (Robin) answered, as he put his mask on. He smiled at Gordon; he hadn't seen the Commissioner in thirteen years, since he quit the Police Force.

"You picked the right time to show up... the force is going to hell!"

"I see, apparently you're retiring soon,"

"Yeah, the force thinks I'm mad, thinks I need a rest,"

Nightwing pulled his batons out of the holster and said "You got any work for me?"

James Gordon smiled and stepped forward, "yeah, new gang from the east side called the Mutants; the leader threatens to 'tear the old man Gordon to shreds!'" Gordon threw an envelope to Nightwing. The former Police Officer opened the envelope, he saw a muscular, animalistic man wearing broken sunglasses, and he looked like a wrestler from the 80's. Nightwing giggled at the absurdity of the man's looks. Gordon knew he'd have to get used to Nightwing's laid back nature, even though he had worked with him before. "It's not funny, the man skinned two police officers last week, he's a wanted murderer," Gordon scowled.

"Oh...um, I'll look into it," Nightwing looked embarrassed, he told himself he had to take this seriously, as it was his first night on the job. Nightwing was about to jump off the building, he stretched his arms to reveal a parachute type material from his arms to his waist. Nightwing gulped, he had never done this before, and he thought he should have tested this before. It took him a moment and Gordon giving him a weird glare to sum up the courage to jump. He closed his eyes and let gravity to do its job, he was falling like a speeding bullet and then he felt the air hit his 'wings' and he pulled up, he was gliding. He landed on a building which had a particularly large pipe running through it. Nightwing gasped, he used to be scared of heights, but not anymore, he had just glided from one building to another, he was lost for words.

**Chapter Eight: The Operating Table**

Gotham City East, the Docks January 26th 1:34AM

Nightwing took a gigantic, muscular elbow to the face; somehow he had got into a fight with the mutant leader. He tried hitting him with his batons but it was no use, his batons had no effect on him. Nightwing took another kick to the jaw, he was surprised he was still standing, blood spurted out of his nose, and however, the Leader was untouched. Nightwing jumped onto some piping on the wall, he thought maybe he could use strategy to beat him. Nightwing dropped a smoke pellet onto the floor, surrounding the Leader in mist. "You should, go back home, I'm disappointed, the vigilantes in this city used to be more challenging!" The Mutant Leader laughed. Nightwing tried to sneak up on him; however, his blood trail gave away his location. Nightwing tried to go for a silent takedown, but the Leader grabbed him by the neck and was about to break it until...

A wall smashed behind them, The Leader looked curious, Nightwing didn't have time to be curious. Something with a cape leaped onto The Leader and constantly pounded him in the face. "No... It can't be it's..." The caped man punched him before he could finish his sentence. Nightwing's vision was distorted; he wasn't seeing things straight but, he knew what he saw. It was The Batman.

Nightwing smiled, he knew his job wasn't done as a group of mutants surrounded him, but they were easy work. Batman was bear-hugged by The Leader and thrown into a mud pit. Batman scowled, he knew The Mutants weren't just some regular gang; he was on some kind of performance enhancer. Batman knew that The Leader wasn't nearly a match to him, but he was just playing around."You don't understand, kid, "Batman grunted as he went for the stomach, "this isn't a mud pit" Batman took the Leader's legs "It's an operating table... AND I'M THE SURGEON!" Batman chopped the leader's back, knocking him over, and unconscious. "Nice suit," Batman sighed. Nightwing looked curious, why would Bruce just show up after another hiatus, this time for over a decade? "Why now? Why did you just show up now? Of all times?" Nightwing asked "I mean... Gotham has been through a lot since you 'died'"

"I've been preparing for a war, getting my troops ready,"

"What troops? Huh, Bruce? I don't see anybody standing next to you"

"I'll tell you about it when we get there,"

"Where? Bruce?"

"Headquarters" Bruce said, walking towards his flying vehicle, the Bat.

**Chapter Nine: Batman Incorporated**

The Bat, somewhere in Canada January 26th 3:15AM

"Okay, Bruce, why are we in Canada?"

Batman stayed silent, his eyes on the passing clouds that he could see through the windshield. Nightwing's bleeding had stopped, for now, his leg was swollen and his hair, face and costume muddy. He knew he shouldn't have just modified Bruce's survival suit, of which Bruce used when he was spelunking in the Batcave. Thoughts rushed through Nightwing's head like lightning. Has Batman lost his sanity? "Are you not talking to me, Bruce?" Nightwing didn't see the point in even trying to make conversation. Batman steadily drove the bat, his eyes glued to the windshield. Within minutes they arrived in an abandoned building. A man wearing armour waved his arms on the top of the building. The Batman landed the bat on top of the building, a cloud of smoke rushed from under The Bat.

"G'night Bruce!" The armoured man said, he had a British accent

"He's injured, get him to medical," Batman grunted,

"Yes sir,"

Nightwing groaned, he still hadn't had any answers. "No, leave me, I need answers, now"

"Follow me," Batman told him.

Nightwing limped towards where Batman was, he was still puzzled by why Batman had returned... again. "Welcome to Batman Incorporated."

"A bit cheesy don't you think?"

"I know, I couldn't think of anything else," Batman looked at the gigantic computer, sighing.

"So... is this it?" Nightwing asked,

"No, no it isn't, follow me into the elevator," Batman walked into the elevator, silently, he gestured Nightwing to follow him. Nightwing limped towards the elevator, he moaned, he was in a lot of pain. He summoned up the strength to get inside the elevator. "You're injured, you need medical assistance".

"No, I can handle it, tell me more,"

"After the great battle for Gotham, Selina and I tried to live normal lives, but she could not be tamed, she left me, taking my daughter. Soon after that I was told that The Gotham hostage situation was a distraction to a much bigger plot, to destroy the United States, Amanda Waller gave me the trigger to an earthquake machine, under the USA, she told me to do what I wanted with it, so, I knew that the League of Shadows were going after it. So, I prepared for a war, recruiting theatrical symbols for justice, like us, people that have trained their lives for this moment."

Nightwing paused for a second, he was surprised that Bruce would just tell him his plans, he had not in him in eleven years but he remembered Bruce being more secretive. "Where is the detonator now?"

"I can't tell you that, The League of Shadows has the O.M.A.C. Project, they are potentially watching us right now having this conversation, if I tell you, right now they will know and destroy the United States of America,"

"Fair enough,"

Nightwing thought about, this situation, 12 years ago he was fighting a murderer as a Police Officer, now, he was fighting a potential war against a terrorist organisation. He had no idea how he, Robin John Blake, ended up in armoured spandex.

"Why do I think that you'll be the death of all of these heroes, people that put their lives in danger everyday for strangers?"

Bruce took his mask off and sighed, "They're only doing their job, just on a grander scale,"

"No, this isn't their job; they fight their own war, not yours"

Nightwing walked away, and said "I'm gonna need a lift, not walking back to the US am I?"

**Chapter Ten: Tracking the O.M.A.C. Project**

Somewhere in South America 10PM January 26th 2027

Selina Kyle and Helena Wayne crawled through the tight air vent of a crummy abandoned warehouse. "Are you sure this is a good idea, Ma?" Helena asked, trying to be quiet. Selina saw a light come through the air grate. She sealed her daughter's mouth shut as fat as lightning, her heart started racing. She saw a blade stab through the metal like paper. She heard someone say something in a foreign language. Selina held her breath; she didn't want to get her daughter to die because of her taste for danger. Helena escaped her mother's grip and swiftly peeked through the hole that the blade made. A short person was under them, waving at Helena, it was Ibn al Xu'ffasch. He stabbed his sword through the vent. Making them both fall to the ground below him.

Ibn tried to go for Selina's head; however, she swiftly moved herself, escaping death. Ibn laughed and roundhouse kicked Helena in the face, she was down and she coughed blood, she snarled and tried to get to her feet. Selina went for his nose, but he grabbed her hand. He twisted it, she poked him in his eyes, but that didn't slow him down, he punched her in the nose and threw her to the floor. Helena sprinted to her mother and pulled her to her feet. Her mother was limp, she was injured. "Mom!" She pulled her mother away; she was struggling to carry her mother away.

Ibn scraped his katana against the floor; he pulled a walkie-talkie from his utility belt and whispered, "Let them find it, The O.M.A.C. Project, we'll surprise them,"

Meanwhile, Selina and Helena were sprinting towards a room which had a sign saying, monitoring room, she inferred that was the room that The O.M.A.C. Project was in, and she was right. The thing that she didn't know was what other terrors were behind this door. Huntress reached the door, knocking it open, "Let's get that... thing and get our butts outta here!" Huntress sighed. They saw a computer monitor and a briefcase next to it, with about fifty wires connected to it. A silhouette stood in front of the monitor. He was muscular and wore a mask, it was Bane.


	2. The Dark Knight Ascending: Inspiration

**The Dark Knight Inspiration**

This Part of the story will introduce Superman and other characters in a more realistic way.

**Chapter One: The Kent Conspiracy**

Metropolis, 2PM January 27th 2027

A man runs like a speeding bullet through Metropolis city centre, cringing. He was chasing a car, which held four men with ski masks and machine guns. "Are we losing him?" One asked.

"Nope, he just keeps on running'"

The man leaped over a car, not even flinching and groaned, he shouted "When I get tired, you're going to need some more gas,"

"... and he keeps on leaping like a squirrel, how is he not tripping over that cape?"

"I take very precise steps!" The man laughed

"Does this guy hear everything!?"

"I'd advise you to stop the car, but I know you won't listen to me,"

"WHO IS THIS GUY!?"

"I'm called a lot of things, I prefer Superman,"

Superman caught up with the car, just to get next to the driver's window, it was undone, and the driver was ready to shoot, until Superman grabbed his gun and threw it behind him. He grabbed the wheel and steered it until the car toppled over. Superman quickly leaped over the skidding car, cringing. He thought he should run away before the press arrived, he felt that he couldn't wear a mask because he would be just like the criminals, however it wasn't hard to distinguish him and his secret identity one and the same. However, they were right on the scene. One lucky reporter, for the local newspaper, The Daily Planet managed to get a picture of his face. Unluckily for Superman, his secret identity, Clark Kent worked at The Daily Planet.

Superman was a muscular, dashing man; he was about forty-eight. He wore a blue t-shirt with an exaggerated 'S' on the chest area. He looked intimidating, but also someone you could also look up to. Superman felt a million flashes in his eye, he cringed, he always hated pictures being taken of him, and it hurt his eyes. Clark Kent grew up on a small farm in Smallville, Kansas. People say he was born in a meteor swarm. It's a myth if he came from a meteor, or if the meteor shower affected him. Superman just shrugged when people asked him how he had retrieved his powers, if you could call them that. Superman even managed to run on water for about five minutes, he never revealed how he did it, because he didn't know.

The Daily Planet Building, Metropolis 11AM January 28th 2027

Clark Kent quickly rushed through the crowd taking pictures of him, Jimmy Olsen, who he thought was his friend betrayed him. Clark Kent's life was ruined. He thought the glasses were enough to hide his face, evidently not. Lois Lane, Clark Kent's girlfriend ran over to him, screaming and shouting words that I wouldn't dare to say. She slapped Clark in the face and continued to shout at him. "Clark Kent! You give me answers! Are you Superman!? Tell me now!? Or the wedding is off!" Lois screamed

"No, I'm not Superman, why would I be Superman?"

"We have photographic evidence, Mr Kent," Jimmy Olsen squeaked, afraid that Clark was going to lose his temper, as he was the one that took the picture that started this all.

"Get out of Here! You're the one that ruined Mr. Kent's life!" Perry White, the editor shouted. Perry White was bursting with anger, he knew that what he did was wrong, approving the story, but news is news, and he explained this to Lois before she ripped his head off. "So, what are we going to do?" sighed Lois, lowering her voice. "We tell the public that I'm not Superman, simple as that,"

"No, it's not as simple as that, do you realise that this is on every newspaper in America, people are calling you the new Batman, the Batman of Metropolis,"

"Superman came first," Jimmy Olsen squeaked,

"Get outta of here before I rip your head off!" Mr. White screamed,

"Oh, yes sir!" Jimmy croaked,

"He's only a kid, don't put too much pressure on him," Clark said, wiping his glasses,

"He's potentially ruined your life!" Lois shouted, losing her temper yet again. Lois put her hands on her forehead; she was trying to hide the fact that she was worried for her own personal safety. "We're not safe, Superman has put a lot of people behind bars, they're gonna come after us, gangs, family members of the criminals, even politicians who want to put you behind bars for vigilantism, everyone that Superman has ever crossed is going to want to find us, and in some cases, kill us,"

"I... I'm sorry Mr. Kent, I... I didn't mean to..."

"It's alright, Jimmy, we have bigger things to worry about,"

The four people discussed this until they heard shouting and screaming outside the window. "What the Devil!?" Mr. White shouted. All four of them quickly ran to the window and saw a fiery explosion. A riot was happening, coming to The Daily Planet, Criminals, gangs, The Metropolis mob alike were coming to kill Clark Kent, and everyone who stood in their way.

**Chapter Two- Heart and Arrow**

Star City, 1AM February 2nd 2027

Oliver Queen sat on the rooftop of a building, he was silent, and he was holding a suitcase, wearing a green hood, a green bulletproof vest, and a quiver, filled with arrows. He also wore a domino mask, which didn't hide much of his face, he had a goatee. Queen was on the hunt for the O.M.A.C. Project, he was inspired by the legend of Batman, Queen called himself, Green Arrow. Arrow opened his briefcase, revealing a bow; he pulled it out of his case. Arrow was hunting down an assassin known as Slade Wilson. Slade was trained by an organisation known as Leviathan, which apparently had ties to the League of Shadows, Arrow had heard about them because, they were the people who made Green Arrow.

That's a story for another time, Arrow was a patient person, and he had survived ten years on Starfish Island, an uncharted island near Santa Prisca Prison. There's a rumour that Bane spent some time on Santa Prisca, just a rumour, but people have sufficient evidence that he may have been there. Arrow attached a scope to his bow, trying his best to keep quiet. Wilson was a master of tracking and a fantastic detective, he would know if Arrow even sneezed. Arrow grinned, he has seen the target, he was wearing a blue and orange suit, and an eye patch. Arrow aimed his arrow at Slade's leg; the arrow had a rope tied to it which was attached to a machine which would drag Slade to the building. Arrow wasn't looking for a physical confrontation; his fighting skills weren't at the standard of Superman or Batman. Arrow packed a dagger and a few throwing knives just in case. Slade walked out of the opposite building of which Arrow was on. The building was called The Canary Cry Bar, which Arrow's girlfriend, Dinah Lance worked at. Dinah Lance was another vigilante known as The Black Canary, you would think that it would give her away, but it didn't. Black Canary was a blonde, leather jacket wearing hero. Canary took a walkie-talkie from her belt. "He's left the building, Olly, he's all yours," Dinah whispered, "I'll back you up if anything happens,"

Arrow looked worried; he was scared that Dinah would get hurt. Granted, she was better at Physical Confrontations than Arrow, but she was nothing compared to Wilson. Arrow put away his fear and let go of his arrow, it went flying for Slade's leg. Arrow felt a slight happiness, until; Wilson back flipped and grabbed the arrow. Slade put the arrow in the ground and started running up the rope. Canary ran after Wilson, putting her domino mask on. Canary was about to run up the rope after Wilson, but Wilson cut the rope as soon as he was on the building. Arrow constantly fired Arrows at Wilson, but he just dodged them all. Wilson roundhouse kicked Arrow in the face, his nose was bloody, everything looked distorted, and he was trying to get up. Arrow quickly grabbed his bow, wasting no time; he grabbed an arrow, pulled it back and fired. Wilson was too good for that, he caught the arrow, leapt onto Arrow and stabbed him in the chest with it.

Arrow's eyes widened, he coughed and turned over, and he was at death's door. "Olly!" Canary cried, she grunted and pulled her gun out of the holster. She fired the gun, she just missed. Wilson pulled Arrow's dagger out of Arrow's sheath. Wilson lifted the dagger, Canary knew this was her last chance to save Arrow, she pointed her gun at Wilson's feet, and she pulled the trigger. The bullet just scraped his thigh, he didn't look like it hurt him, but it did. Wilson squinted; he turned around, glaring at Canary. She continued to fire at Wilson, Wilson ran from the gunfire, until taking cover behind a metal power box. "Pathetic," Wilson whispered, he pulled an Uzi from his jacket. He came out of cover and started firing the gun. Canary ran from the bullets, trying not to get shot. Arrow regained consciousness; he reached his bow and pulled his last arrow from his quiver and fired. Wilson fell to the ground; he had just taken an arrow to the calf.

**Chapter Three- Scarlet Speedster**

Central City 5PM February 2nd 2027

Former professional sprinter turned Police Officer, Barry Allen, had never felt better. He was Central City's guardian, he was The Flash. Now, he was running for his life. A secret organisation known as Leviathan is hunting down heroes. Leviathan was the organisation behind The League of Shadows; they were formed by Talia Al Ghul to destroy the United States of America. Flash ran from the gunfire, he was aware that the person who was supposedly Superman was pronounced dead in a terrorist attack a few days ago; it wasn't a surprise that the terrorists were after him. They had already burnt down Barry's apartment and now they were chasing him into the street. The Flash wore a red armoured suit, a full mask, similar to Batman's but with lightning bolts instead of ears. He had a lightning bold within a circle painted on his chest-plate, it was slightly scratched.

There were people from every street he passed shooting at him, The Flash was lucky he had fantastic reflexes. Flash leaped over a speeding car, it wasn't easy with what seemed like an infinite amount of guns shooting at him, he didn't even think to fight back, he couldn't, if he'd even just stopped for a quarter of a second he would have instantly been shot. Flash came to a problem, he had ran into a dead end. "No, no, no!" The Flash panicked, he had never been in this position before.

No-one had ever actually set out to hunt Flash down and kill him. Flash knew this was it; he would never survive a rainfall of bullets, let alone two or three. The Flash was surrounded, he had no-where to go, and hundreds of people circled him, holding ten gun-shops worth of guns. A booming voice shouted "I want him alive! I want him to see his country burn to the ground, just like the rest of them!" He wore a harness, a jacket, cargo pants and a metal mask; it was the masked man known only as, Bane.

**Chapter Four- Amazon**

On an island near Greece 9AM February 3rd 2027

"Trevor, Trevor! Come in!"

Steve Trevor, a CIA agent was escorting an ex-member of Leviathan to a safe house in Greece, however, Leviathan found out about this and took the plane down, and now Steve was stuck on a random island near Greece. His arm was broken in two places, his back ached."I'm here, I don't know where I am, but I'm alive, talk to me, Waller,"

"We don't know where you are either, Trevor,"

"Could 'ya say that again?"

"You're on uncharted land, Trevor, we cannot track you, and you're on your own, buddy,"

"What are the chances of you finding me?"

"I don't know... one in a million... maybe"

"That's not a very high rate, is it now, Waller?"

"Uh, no, it isn't Trevor, I'm sorry,"

"Better start gathering sticks and stones, if I'm gonna be spending the rest of my life here, I might as well make a start," Steve struggled to get up, he had a bloody nose, he had seemingly lost some teeth. Steve finally got to his feet, his vision was not very good, and he was in his worst state. Steve climbed up a hill to find a horse. However, it wasn't a normal horse; it had a saddle on it. Thoughts rushed through Steve's head; he thought maybe there could be life on this island.

On an Island near Greece 6AM March 1st 2027

Steve had survived almost a month on the island, there was a problem, he was running out of supplies, no-one could give him any, no-one could fly in a helicopter and just rescue him, and it wasn't as simple as that. Steve had gone days not eating, if he continued living like that he knew he would die. He had lost track of what date and time it was. He had blanked out his previous life, one of danger, the fun kind, his fiancée and his son and his friends. Steve saw the same horse everyday, the one with a saddle. The horse followed him everywhere he went, travelling for food. The electricity from the destroyed plane had run out and the bodies of the pilot and the passengers were rotting, it attracted flies. Steve had to move from the plane about five days ago as the oil started to leak. Steve started losing weight, he started to feel weak. Steve fell to the ground, and passed out.

Steve Trevor woke up; he wasn't where he was the previous day, or however long it was. He groaned, he realised that something was wrong, he felt comfortable, he felt like, he was at home. "Uhh... was that just a nightmare?"

"Silence, You're injured,"

A tall woman stood over Steve, she had black curly hair, she wore a golden tiara with a ruby, and an armoured jumpsuit with red for the upper body and blue for the lower body. She had what seemed like an eagle on her chest. She wore two bracelets that looked more like gauntlets and a sword on her back. "Where the hell am I?" Trevor asked, watching the woman's sword.

"The island of Themyscira, not too far from Greece,"

"So... I'm still on the island, then?"

"Yes, you're still here, but not for long,"

"Not for long? Who are you?"

"I am Diana Prince of Themyscira, heir to the Throne,"

"So, how long have you been on this island?"

"I'm not alone, there are other women on this island, some men, but few, this is an island ran by women,"

"Why has this island not been discovered yet, don't you want to be discovered?"

"No, the way we ended up here was in ancient Greece, because of the seemingly superiority of men, we took our own land with the men who knew that we were equal. Due to the moving of plates we were separated from Greece, we believe that Zeus did this for us, to stop them from taking over our land,"

"Um, don't you know that the Greek gods aren't real?"

"Of course they are! How do you suppose you landed here of all places! Zeus felt pity on you!"

Diana was losing her temper, how dare he defy Zeus? Diana doubted the task that her mother had set her. Her mother, the queen Hippolyta set her the task to take Steve back to man's world. A few days a go, a few Themysciran troops had spotted Leviathan troops scouring the land for survivors, namely Steve Trevor. Diana's mother thought it best that they got Steve off the island, and quick.


End file.
